Wouldn't it be great if we could remove the mistakes we made in the past? We'd be willing to suffer any amount of pain to start again with a clean slate. This is happening for prisoners in New Zealand. No, their past misdeeds won't be wiped out, but they can have their tattoos removed at a cut price. Authorities are hoping to stop convicts from re-offending. No longer will designs on their skin remind them of the life they used to live, but future employers might look more favorably on them.

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Instead of the normal cost of removal sessions to erase tattoos from faces, necks and lower arms, which is about US$3,500 (£2,200)—at the prison, they pay US$23 (£15). Depending on the artwork, it can take four to six sessions to have a tattoo removed. The Huffington Post reported in 2013 that convicts in Los Angeles are offered a free service to remove body art which identifies them as gang members. Does our life mark us in a different way as we age? Maybe our expression has become hardened by the need for protection. Perhaps our features are set in grim lines, or our outlook has been warped by the things we've seen.

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Think of the face reflected in the mirror. Do you relax the muscles that hold an ugly reminder and smile at yourself? Take that a step further and you can present your calm gentle, accepting face to the world. Then, others might see you without the ugly marks—just like the prisoner with his or her tattoos removed. The process won't be easy. Time and effort are needed. Also, your thoughts need to be reshaped. Whatever caused your hardened expression is over. Your past should be treated like the prisoner's misdeeds. Serve your time in regret, ask for forgiveness or understanding, and then move on. What do you see in the mirror?

I am conflicted about this. Part of me wants them to have the ability to 'come clean' and start over, but part of me wants them to be able to reflect upon where they have been. Should someone in prison pay less for tattoo removal than someone not in prison? I don't think so.

Sometimes I think it would be nice to have a time machine and go back to right wrongs, and make better choices. Yet, we really can't change the past - all we can do is learn from it, and use what we've learned to create a better future!